Football Argentina: The Teams

Club Atlético Boca JuniorsKnown as: Boca, Los Xeneizes, Los Bosteros (The Shit Boys)Founded: 1905Colors: Blue and YellowStadium: Estadio Alberto J. Armando (La Bombonera)Titles: 23 Domestic Championships, 6 Copa Libertadores, 3 Intercontinental Cups
Along with River Plate, Boca is one of the titans of Argentine football. With a glittering history and huge fan base, the club and its stadium, the Bombonera, are world famous. Based in the poor, but colorful neighborhood of La Boca, the team inspires a multitude of fanatical supporters. Boca fans place more importance on guts and commitment from their players than displays of pretty football. For them, Boca Juniors is not just a football club, it’s a way of life.Arch Rivals: River

Club Atlético River PlateKnown as: River, Los Millonarios (The Millionaires), Las Gallinas (The Chickens)Founded: 1901Colors: White and RedStadium: El MonumentalTitles: 33 Domestic Championships, 2 Copa Libertadores, 1 Intercontinental Cup
The Yin to Boca’s Yang, River Plate’s mythical white shirt with its diagonal red stripe incites just as much passion amongst supporters as the blue and yellow of their rivals. Regarded by some as the greatest of all South American teams because of their trophy-laden history, River pride themselves on their attractive, attacking style of football above all else. Traditionally, fans come from the middle and upper classes of society, but you’ll find River supporters in all walks of life.Arch Rivals: Boca

Club Atlético Vélez SársfieldKnown as: Vélez, El Fortín (The Fortress)Founded: 1910Colors: White and BlueStadium: Estadio José AmalfitaniTitles: 6 Domestic Championships, 1 Copa Libertadores, 1 Intercontinental Cup
In relation to the amount of success Vélez has enjoyed over the years, it has surprisingly few fans. This is perhaps the main factor preventing the club from being considered one of the ‘big’ Argentine teams. Supporters are also considered to be particularly amargo (literally ‘bitter’) and usually prefer to see the glass as half empty. But surely if the team can return to winning ways and continue producing talented players, more fans will be tempted to jump on the Vélez bandwagon.Arch Rivals: Ferro (2nd Division)

Club Atlético IndependienteKnown as: Independiente, Diablo Rojo (Red Devils)Founded: 1905Colors: Red with Blue or WhiteStadium: Estadio Libertadores de America (La Doble Visera)Titles: 14 Domestic Championships, 7 Copa Libertadores, 2 Intercontinental Cups
A club that was until recently known as “The King of the Cups” (until Boca overtook their number of international trophies), Independiente has a glorious past, and a present that can best be described as mediocre. Fans are notoriously demanding). They not only expect success on the pitch, they want beautiful football as well. These days, unfortunately, they more often than not go home disappointed.Arch Rivals: Racing

Club Atlético San Lorenzo de AlmagroKnown as: San Lorenzo, El Ciclón (The Cyclone), Los Santos (The Saints), Los Cuervos (The Crows)Founded: 1908Colors: Blue and RedStadium: Estadio Pedro Bidegain (El nuevo Gasómetro)Titles: 10 Domestic Championships
San Lorenzo is a powerhouse club with a big local fan base and plenty of domestic glory; the only thing missing so far is international success. The Saints are the pride of the working class Boedo neighborhood, and fans are renowned for their passionate singing of a colorful array of club songs from the terraces. They were once the owners of a majestic stadium, the Gasómetro, which unfortunately was torn down for financial reasons, and replaced by a supermarket. It is a team that almost has it all, but is just not quite Boca or River.Arch Rivals: Huracán

Racing Club de AvellanedaKnown as: Racing, La Academia (The Academy)Founded: 1903Colors: Sky Blue and WhiteStadium: El Cilindro de AvellanedaTitles: 7 Domestic Championships, 1 Copa Libertadores, 1 Intercontinental Cup
For a club whose glory years are in the distant past, Racing has managed to maintain a huge group of stoic supporters and remains one of the Big Five teams of Argentine football. It is said that the Racing faithful love to suffer, and suffer is what they have mostly done since 1967, with only one championship (the 2001 Apertura) in all that time. The team seems to be in constant danger of relegation to the second division, which has caused countless cases of premature baldness among fans. The club is known for producing many talented players, who often go on to represent big European clubs, and the Argentine national team.Arch Rivals: Independiente

Estudiantes de la PlataKnown as: Estudiantes, Los Pincharratas (The Rat-stabbers) or pinchasFounded: 1905Colors: Red and WhiteStadium: Estadio Jorge Luis HirschiTitles: 4 Domestic Championships, 3 Copa Libertadores, 1 Intercontinental Cup
In the city of La Plata, Boca Juniors doesn’t exist. Neither does River Plate. That’s because in La Plata, the footballing world revolves around two teams only; Estudiantes and Gimnasia. While support for the two clubs is fairly evenly split, it is Estudiantes who have won the big tournaments both locally and internationally, while their cousins Gimnasia have never actually won a major trophy.Arch Rivals: Gimnasia de la Plata

Newell’s Old BoysKnown as: Newell’s, Los Leprosos (The Lepers)Founded: 1903Colors: Red and BlackStadium: Estadio Newell’s Old Boys (El Coloso del Parque)Titles: 5 Domestic Championships
Much like in La Plata, the two teams of the city of Rosario define themselves by their mutual hatred of one another. Fans of Newell’s are traditionally more middle class, while Central supporters come from the lower classes. Historically, both teams have done very well for themselves, gaining nine Argentine championships for the city of Rosario, and turning out many great international players.Arch Rivals: Rosario Central

Rosario CentralKnown as: Central, Los Canallas (The scoundrels)
La Academia Rosarina (The Academy of Rosario)Founded: 1889Colors: Blue and YellowStadium: Estadio Gigante de ArroyitoTitles: 4 Domestic championships
When not busy being bitter rivals of Newell’s, Central has found time to produce a great many exceptional players, earning them (like Racing), the nickname of ‘The Academy’. With recent teams struggling to make an impact in the top division, the biggest days of the year for them remain the clasico fixtures against their cross-town enemies.Arch Rivals: Newell’s

Asociación Atlética Argentinos JuniorsKnown as: Argentinos Juniors, Bichos Colorados (Red Bugs)Founded: 1904Colors: Red and WhiteStadium: Estadio Diego Armando MaradonaTitles: 2 Domestic Championships, 1 Copa Libertadores
A popular team with just two national titles, the glittering star of Argentinos Juniors’ trophy cabinet is no doubt the 1985 Copa Libertadores. A great producer of talent, they can take particular credit for handing a certain 15-year-old by the name of Diego Maradona his professional debut in 1976. It was arguably the club’s most telling contribution to world football, and they made sure to remind everybody of the fact by naming their stadium after the mythical number 10.Arch Rivals: Platense (2nd Division)